Thursday, November 5, 2026

Friday Oct 24/Nov 6ns/2026/ Holy Martyr Aréthas and Those With Him; St. Elesbaán, King of Ethiopia - Fast day - I Thess. 2:14-20; St. Luke 10:1-15

Fast day

Our Lord and Savior

was Crucified on Friday

Friday

Oct 23/Nov 5 ns

2026

Holy Martyr Aréthas and Those With Him;

St. Elesbaán, King of Ethiopia

The Holy Martyr Aréthas and those with him suffered for the Christian Faith with over four thousand Christians-priests, monks and nuns, men, women and children. Aréthas was the eparch in the town of Nagran, in the southern Arabian land of Omir. He was ninety-five years old when he suffered. Dunaan, a cruel Jewish persecutor of Christians, then governed Omir. Determined to eradicate all Christians from his land, he surrounded the Christian town of Nagran, and sent a message to the people saying he would put them all to death unless they renounced Christ. The citizens closed the gates, and Dunaan attacked the city wall for a long time without success. Then the iniquitous governor swore to the citizens that he would do nothing to them, if only they would open the gate for him to enter and receive the tribute that they owed him-and that he would take it and immediately withdraw. The Christians believed him and opened the gate. Then the oath-breaking Jew summoned the aged Aréthas, the clergy and other distinguished citizens and beheaded them all with the sword. He then perpetrated a horrible slaughter in the town. Learning of this, the Byzantine Emperor Justin was greatly grieved, and wrote a letter to the Ethiopian Emperor, Elesbaán, requesting him to set out with an army against Dunaan to avenge the innocent blood of the Christians. Elesbaán obeyed Justin, attacked the governor of Omir with his army, defeated him, slew his entire army, and beheaded him. By a revelation from God, a certain devout man named Abramios was installed as governor of Omir, and again by God's revelation, St. Gregory of Omir (December 19) was installed as archbishop. Christians rebuilt the Church of the Holy Trinity in Nagran that Dunaan had burned, and also built a church to the Holy Martyr Aréthas and the other martyrs of Nagran. St. Aréthas and the others suffered and received martyr's wreaths from the Lord in the year 523.

1 Thessalonians 2:14-20 KJV

2:14 For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:

15 Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:

16 Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.

17 But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire.

18 Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.

19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?

20 For ye are our glory and joy.

Saint Luke 10:1-15 KJV

10 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.

2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.

3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.

4 Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way.

5 And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house.

6 And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.

7 And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.

8 And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:

9 And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

10 But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say,

11 Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

12 But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.

13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

14 But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.

15 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.

EDIFICATION
St Symeon Metaphrastis
Paraphrase of the Homilies of St Makarios of Egypt: Spiritual Perfection

'The Lord has scattered the bones of those who seek to please men', it says (Ps. 53:5. LXX); and: The Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man' (Ps. 5:6), thus making it clear that deceitfulness is just as abhorrent to God as murder. Again, it numbers among the 'workers of iniquity' those who 'speak peace to their neighbor but have evil in their hearts' (Ps. 28: 3), and elsewhere it speaks of those who commit lawless acts in their hearts (Ps. 58:2). It also says: 'Woe to you, when men speak well of you' (St Luke 6:26) - that is to say, when you want to hear people say good things about you and when you hang upon their glory and praise. It is true that those who do good cannot escape notice altogether. Indeed, the Lord Himself says: 'Let your light shine before men' (St Matt. 5:16), though here it is understood that we do good for the glory of God and not for our own glory or because we desire men's praise. If this is not the case, then we are lacking in faith, as the Lord makes clear when He says: 'How can you have faith when you receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?' (St John 5:44). St Paul bids us to do everything, even to eat and to drink, for the glory of God; 'for.' he says, 'whether you eat or drink, or do anything else, do it for the glory of God' (1 Cor. 10:31). And St John equates hatred with murder when he says:
'Whoever hates his brother is a murderer' (1 John 3 : I 5).

*Ascetical homilies are the God-given rewards granted to those, who is asceticism, from the Holy Apostles on, gave and give their very life, whether by breath or blood, to their love of Christ and His two salvific commands.

If we, in turn, contemplate and reflect on those homilies we will find crucial clarity in scripture but also clarity in definition of our spiritual status as we take up the Cross to transcend from transient darkness to the Eternal Light of the Holy Trinity.